Shonda Rhimes Shares Unfiltered First Impression of Meeting Taylor Swift

Shonda Rhimes and Taylor Swift

As Taylor Swift prepared for the April 19 release of her 11th studio album, Shonda Rhimes was reflecting on what her first impression of the megastar was when they met years ago.

The Grey’s Anatomy creator told People that the “Cruel Summer” singer once visited her office on the set of the long-running ABC medical drama to perform “Love Story,” one of the hits from Swift’s 2008 album Fearless. Swift is a known fan of Grey’s Anatomy and has even named one of her cats after Meredith Grey, the protagonist played by Ellen Pompeo.

Rhimes, now 54, said she thought Swift, now 34, was “an interesting artist” after watching the singer perform while barefoot in her office. The TV producer recalled that Swift, whose Fearless song “White Horse” was featured on a Season 5 episode in fall 2008, identified herself as a big fan of the show. Rhimes also remembered thinking that “Love Story" was “really good.”

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In the years since that initial meeting, Swift has “produced so much music,” Rhimes acknowledged during her conversation with People. “And it is kind of the voice of what that generation is in people's heads,” she added.

Rhimes’ reflection on her introduction to Swift came to light as Swifties around the world celebrated the arrival of The Tortured Poets Department, an album the “Lavender Haze” singer first teased back in February while accepting a record-breaking fourth Album of the Year win at the 2024 Grammy Awards. Fans have eagerly counted down the days to the album’s release and were thrilled to learn once it dropped that the project was actually a double album encompassing 31 tracks.

Rhimes isn’t the first member of the Grey’s Anatomy family to share the story of their first meeting with Swift. Jessica Capshaw, who played pediatric surgeon Arizona Robbins on Grey’s, revealed during a recent appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show that she and Swift were both excited to meet each other when they found themselves at the same party several years ago. The two became texting buddies for a while, though Capshaw said she believed that Swift eventually “changed her number.”

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